Another sigh of relief for my back pocket as the Reserve Bank made a decision on Tuesday to leave the cash rate unchanged! Shortly before their Tuesday meeting the odds seemed to be on a rate rise, and the major banks sound like they were all very keen for there to be an increase – they are complaining about the higher deposit rates and lower mortgage rates that they are currently dealing with (and not liking). However, none of the major banks wanted to be “the bad guy” who put up interest rates despite the Reserve Bank leaving the rate unchanged, so that means that for now at least, we don’t need to pay out any extra for our home loan repayments..... Keep Reading »

Will interest rates rise in the near future or won’t they … that’s the million dollar question and one we have mulled over a lot – even as recently as last week we were contemplating what the futures market had to say about the probability of the Reserve Bank raising the cash rate and banks following suit with hikes in home loan interest rates. Now let’s throw another variable into the mix: the value of the Australian dollar..... Keep Reading »

After having so many interest rate rises over the past twelve months, it’s been quite a pleasure since May to not be anxious about the increase of my monthly mortgage repayment, since the Reserve Bank (and fortunately, my bank too) have seen fit to keep rates stable. But it’s probably not safe to assume that this pleasant state of being will continue indefinitely: or is it?.... Keep Reading »

Social media is everywhere these days and in case you didn’t realise, even banks are getting into Facebook and Twitter. Something that we used to consider as just part of our after hours fun and a way to catch up with friends is becoming all-pervasive and there are even studies out there on how banks are interacting with us, their customers, via social media..... Keep Reading »

There was no interest rate rise at the August meeting of the Reserve Bank: and snap, same again this week, again the cash rate has remained at 4.50 per cent after the Reserve Bank board got together for their first Tuesday in September meeting..... Keep Reading »

Australian mortgage holders in some parts of the country might have become a little nervous this week, with new statistics out showing that the value of Australian houses and units has dropped in some cities – in particular, in Brisbane (by 3.3 per cent) and Perth (by 2.5 per cent) for houses, and in Canberra (by 2.7 per cent) and Perth (by 2.5 per cent) for units, over the three months to the end of July, according to the RP Data-Rismark International quarterly index. In other cities, home owners and investors won’t be so concerned, as there have been slight rises; and in all cases, the overall trend for the past year is still an increase..... Keep Reading »

In Australia the news this week is peppered with mortgage related news that is mostly related to the upcoming federal election:.... Keep Reading »

So, the Reserve Bank board members have got together again and decided that at least for now, the official cash rate won’t rise and that looks like meaning that our home loan interest rates will stay the same for at least another month, too. .... Keep Reading »

When I was reading the paper on the weekend I can’t say it made my day to see this headline: Warning: Your mortgage is going up. This story was carried by all the major papers across Australia and the headline was enough to make me more than a little concerned, despite having heard that an interest rate rise wasn’t likely until after the election at the earliest..... Keep Reading »

If you read about mortgages in the news, then the most topic home loan related topic is definitely interest rates. Sure, we also want to read about different methods of repayment or whether or not we can pay off the loan early, but when it comes down to it, the most popular mortgage stories are clearly centered on interest rate issues..... Keep Reading »

Here’s some good news for mortgage holders worried about more interest rate rises in the near future: the banks are all saying that they won’t raise interest rates until after the federal election. Of course, we don’t yet know how soon the federal election could be – late next month is a common tip at the moment – but it could even be later than that, and the later it is, the more reprieve we home loan customers have on increased repayments..... Keep Reading »

The experts are trying to make the mortgage situation in Australia sound all optimistic – they think interest rates won’t rise too much and they suggest that plenty of Australians are still able to cope well with an existing mortgage or to enter the home loan market for the first time. But just because Australia may not have been as badly affected by the global financial crisis as many other countries, that doesn’t mean that mortgages are easy for everyone, as news this week makes absolutely clear..... Keep Reading »

This week the mortgage news in Australia varies from banks trying not to raise interest rates, to new laws coming in to stop some of the excessive fees we can pay, and on to a mortgage belonging to the Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbott! In more detail:.... Keep Reading »

There are lots of interesting tidbits in Australian mortgage news this week, so without further ado:.... Keep Reading »

Surveys are showing that as individuals, mortgage holders like me are more pessimistic than the experts about how many interest rate rises we are going to have to pay out for in the next year or so. I guess those of us who are the ones who’ll have to dig deeper in our pockets are more likely to be concerned about this, and it translates into statistics stating that consumers believe there will be at least three rises in interest rates in the next twelve months..... Keep Reading »